Digital Entrepreneurship: Examining Psychological, Social, and Economic Determinants of Entrepreneurial Intentions and Attitudes among University Students
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.55737/rl.v5i1.26171Keywords:
Digital Entrepreneurship, Entrepreneurial Intentions, Theory of Planned Behaviour, University Students, Platform Economy, Psychosocial FactorsAbstract
This paper examines how psychological, social, and economic determinants affect entrepreneurial intentions and attitudes towards digital platforms among Pakistani university students. Based on the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), it was examined how psychological determinants (self-efficacy, motivation, stress, resilience, confidence), social determinants (family support, peer influence, mentorship, social isolation, discrimination), and economic determinants (financial stability, resource access, tuition burden, economic hardship) influence the entrepreneurial attitudes and intensions. A cross-sectional survey of 372 students in four major public universities, Punjab, Pakistan, with the help of multistage random sampling technique, using validated instruments, such as the Entrepreneurial Intentions Scale (Linán & Chen, 2009, α = 0.84) and the Social Media Attitude Scale (Otrar & Argin, 2015, α = 0.85), was conducted. Analysis of variance demonstrated statistically significant influences of all three groups of determinants on attitude towards digital entrepreneurship platforms that demonstrated that students with socially marginalized and economically disadvantaged character had more favorable attitudes. No determinant showed significant impacts on the intentions to start an entrepreneurship, demonstrated a significant gap. The research can help in advancing the TPB literature by indicating that the attitudes are not enough in the intention formation process in the context of digital entrepreneurship, and especially in the developing economies on the way of swift digitalization. Practical implications indicate the existence of a gap in attitude intention that requires holistic entrepreneurial systems involving the provision of skills, resources and the creation of opportunities.
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